Faith for the Physical

Right at this moment, it is 6:23 on a Tuesday morning. I had one of those "one hour earlier than anticipated" internal alarm clock moments. At first these internal wake up calls were getting on my nerves, as I would have just really preferred to sleep an extra hour before having to face what would most likely be a busy, chaotic full day; However, they have become more frequent, and I am slowly getting the point that I think that God has something to do with this.
I like the idea of God waking me up to start my day. It's far more appealing then the incessant chime of my cell phone alarm clock. An alarm clock wakes me up to face the day, but having God wake me up is kind of like walking downstairs in my bathrobe to see my mom making a pot of coffee, with a "Good morning sweetheart!" and a warm hug. It's personal, intimate, and exactly what I need.
At this time in my life, I am going through what could be described as a "rough patch". I've been through "gravel in the shoe" and "lost in the woods" moments before, but this one is unlike any that I have experienced before. It's an incessant pang in my spirit that is constantly present, drawing me closer to my heavenly Father. I'm quite certain that that is why He has allowed me to experience this difficult time.
When a young child skins her knee, or her best friend turns against her and trades her in for a "cooler"friend, what do you think would be some of the emotions that would result from such physical and emotional blows? My personal answer to this would be to cry, and want to be held.

On my commute to work yesterday morning, I told God that I needed to be held. I felt totally silly saying that out loud. How could a spiritual being "hold me"? Would it be the same as experiencing the strong and safe embrace of a man, or the tender touch of my mother? And yet, those were the words that came to mind, and out of my mouth.

I am learning that a very key and yet difficult piece of having faith in God is having faith for the physical needs. Our physical needs directly connect to our spiritual and emotional needs as well; they are simply a symptom of a greater need. Telling God that I "needed to be held" meant so much more than a need in the physical realm, which I was unaware of at that time. But isn't that just like our Heavenly Father? He knows exactly what we need, when we need it, and what a comfort when in our humanity, we only know a small snippet of why we have that need?
Since telling Jesus what my need was, I have felt this serene peace. Although I can't feel a physical embrace, the truth is, I needed far more than what a physical embrace could provide. and of course, He knew that. My prayer for all of you is that upon reading this post, you won't think to yourself "wow, she's really brave to share this with the world!", but rather, would be encouraged to share your own needs in total trust and vulnerability to your Heavenly Father. It is only in our vulnerability that we can experience the peace that comes from complete transparency.
May you have the courage to have that transparency with Jesus and those in your life, and have the peace of knowing that He knows your deepest needs, and will meet them in the deepest, most beautiful ways.